Panel Discussion: Joe Kubert, Artistic Ace!

 

Redartz:  The subject of our tribute and discussion this week is a man perhaps less familiar to Marvel zuvembies,  but certainly revered by DC fans, and the comics world in general. Joe Kubert's career began back in the Golden Age of comics, and spanned every subsequent decade until his passing in 2012. His work was seen at practically every publisher you could name- MLJ/Archie, Quality, Atlas/Marvel, EC, and St. John (where Kubert and Norman Maurer introduced the world to 3-D comics).

But Kubert is probably best known for his brilliant work at DC, where he worked for many years . Here's an example of Joe's earlier work from Eerie #9, 1952 (Avon Publications).

Kubert created, or was involved in the creation of many characters,  including Viking Prince, Tor, Thorn, Enemy Ace; and was part of the team that started the Silver Age with the Flash in Showcase 4. He handled a huge share of DC's noted war comics, his years on Sgt. Rock positively iconic. On many of those war tales Kubert worked with Robert Kanigher, weaving the adventures of Rock, The Losers, Unknown Soldier, Haunted Tank and Enemy Ace. He also handled the art on DC's "Tarzan", and gave us the classic look for Hawkman. And although he was mostly associated with 'adventurous' titles,  Kubert also rendered most of DC's heroic stable: Batman, Superman,  Flash, and the Justice League.  Indeed, as often as Gil Kane's work could be seen on Marvel covers, Kubert's shined on DC covers.

On a personal note,  my first exposure to Joe's art was on the great covers for "Rima the Jungle Girl".
Those books were a visual treat both inside ( gorgeous work by Nestor Redondo) and outside, with Kubert's dramatic covers. Years later I further came to appreciate Kubert's skills when I became intrigued by his "Enemy Ace" strip. His magnificent,  gritty, powerful rendering is unmistakable. And those aerial dogfights and vintage planes- Kubert was a master. 

Speaking of mastery, his eye for drama was second to none. You'll see this on display below in another BitBA Gallery of Great Covers. But first we must mention another of Kubert's contributions to the industry: the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. Founded in 1976, the Kubert School has produced many new professional talents for the comics world.  Just another way in which Joe Kubert's influence continues to this day, and on into the future. 

And now, time to look over some covers (something I always enjoy, anyway). Hope you enjoy them too, and that they inspire you to share your thoughts on this giant of the comics industry...

 

                                  Love the three-part design of the cover on the left below...

  

 

 

  

 

 

 

This may be my favorite comic cover of all time...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

   

 

 

 

  

 

 

   

 

 

Saw this on the racks in 1974 and couldn't pass it up...

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Kubert really had a knack for rendering piercingly powerful expressions, as on the right below...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Some dramatic perspective, here...

 

 

 More recently, here's the cover from Joe's Graphic Novel treatment of Viet Nam...

 

 

 

And how better to conclude this tour of Kubert's work than with his take on the Bible?

In response to HB's request, here is the cover for Justice Inc. #4. Another impressive Kubert...

Rank and File: Best of the Bronze Part 2- DC!

 

Redartz: Welcome to the second part of our Bronze Age Triple-header! Last week we counted down our favorites from Marvel; this week, we give some love to those DC books we treasured. Again, our time frame (for the sake of our discussion; not an ironclad Bronze age definition) is 1970 - 1985. And again, the choices can be difficult. Mine were; leaving out many many beloved comics. But if held captive by the Secret Society of Super Villains and forced to make a list, I suppose this would be pretty close. And so, without any further delay, let's get started. Here are...

 My Top Five Favorite Bronze Age DC's:

 

 

Detective Comics 475- Possibly my favorite single DC book. Steve Englehart, Marshall Rogers and Terry Austin. Batman and the Joker. All at their best. Certainly my favorite Joker tale, even over Neal Adams' classic Batman 251. To each their own, right?

 

Showcase 100- years before "Crisis on Infinite Earths", this terrific book brought a huge assortment of characters together to face a spaceborn threat. It actually was my first introduction to many of those characters, such as Bat Lash, Enemy Ace and the Challengers of the Unknown. Paul Kupperberg, Paul Levitz and Joe Staton gave us this enjoyable romp through a hundred issues worth of Showcased features. One of my favorite anniversary issues.

 

Justice League of America 200- And speaking of anniversary issues, this one may be the best ever. Hearkening back to vintage JLA adventures, with a spectacular team of artists, well written by Gerry Conway, and framed with art sequences by George Perez. A wraparound cover, tons of characters and tons of fun.

Legion of Super-Heroes 289- The issue that cemented the Legion as my favorite DC book at the time (even over the red hot Teen Titans). A great characterization issue, with a lot of focus on the Legionnaires and their relationships (perhaps unavoidably, as a number of them were stranded together). The issue that led into the classic "Great Darkness" saga; and an issue with stellar art and a fantastic cover. Paul Levitz and Keith Giffen really had it going here. 

 

DC Blue Ribbon Digest 41- Yes, I know that reprint formats are verboten. But this issue was all-new, so I get a technicality here! 100 pages of new Sugar and Spike stories by the great Sheldon Mayer. Perhaps not an Eisner Award winning book, granted, but this was aces in my eyes. And to that I can only add, "Glx Sphtzl Glaaah"...

With that, I leave the post in your capable hands. What are the five DC books you love the most? And be sure to start thinking ahead to next week, when we finish our trio of lists with: your top five from 'everyone else'...

 

Chew the Fat: Company-Jumping Characters!

Redartz:  Every comic company has its iconic, trademark characters. What would Marvel be without the ever-amazing Spider-man? Or DC without Batman?  Archie Comics have, well, Archie. Disney and the ducks go hand-in-wing. You get the idea; many characters are intimately identified with their parent company, and many of those companies go to great lengths to keep those characters close.

However, over the years, numerous characters have started their print careers under one company, only to make a switch to a competing company later on. Whether due to a copyright battle, a corporate buyout, or changes in licensing, many notable characters have seen publication under more than one banner. This makes it challenging for the collector, and probably a headache for Bob Overstreet; but that's the comic biz. Let's look at some of these 'company jumpers'...


Captain Marvel

 


















"The Big Red Cheese" moved from Fawcett to DC years after legal wrangling in which DC claimed the character violated their copyright on Superman. One wonders how Marvel would have liked to get their hands on the Captain; they put the name to use at any rate.


Tarzan

Edgar Rice Burroughs' "Tarzan" appeared for years under the Dell label, and then under Western's Gold Key. DC got the rights, and continued Gold Key's numbering. Marvel took over in the later 70's with a new first issue, and art by ace John Buscema.


Conan the Barbarian

 


 















 Marvel won rights to Robert E. Howard's barbarian, and presented his adventures in various formats from the 70's through the 90's. The new Millenium saw Dark Horse Comics publishing Conan, until recently Marvel regained the rights. Although a licensed character, I'll always associate Conan with Marvel...

 
Yogi Bear

 Hanna Barbera's famous picnic basket thief seems to have made the rounds of comic companies as thoroughly as he did the picnic tables. Gold Key, Charlton, Marvel, Harvey and even Archie Comics! How did DC miss out (although I could be unaware of just that eventuality: DC has access to Hanna Barbera's retinue, and have been making great use of them the last few years).


 
Jonny Quest

One lonely issue from Gold Key was all you could find of the iconic boy adventurer for many years, until in 1986 Comico began it's fine run. In the 90's Dark Horse picked up the franchise with the "New Adventures".
 
Darth Vader

 


 















 Marvel struck gold by getting the rights to "Star Wars" putting out the first issue before the film opened. The House of Ideas kept it up for years, through the mid 80's. But Dark Horse picked up the ball  (or Death Star, if you prefer) and ran with it beginning in the 90's. Yet once again, Marvel recently re-acquired the rights and is putting out numerous series once again.


Blue Beetle

 













 Blue Beetle debuted at Charlton in the 60's, by the great Steve Ditko. In the 70's Modern Comics reprinted some of  his Charlton appearances. Not long afterwards, DC bought out Charlton's stable of heroes (as they had with the Quality characters), and made the Beetle a part of the great Justice League International series.


Popeye

 


















 The immortal Sailor Man, like Tarzan, has been published for many decades under many banners. Gold Key and Charlton featured him through the 60's and 70's. In the late 80's, Harvey put out some issues (what was up with Harvey back then, anyway- not just Casper and Richie Rich anymore). Most recently IDW has been putting out some fine stories...

There you have a few examples of 'wanderers' among the various comics publishers. No doubt you can come up with more. And of these pictured here, who do you feel did the 'best job' with a given character? Which characters do you identify with which publishers? Go ahead and 'chew the fat'...